DNA Damage in Children Exposed to Secondhand Cigarette Smoke and its Association with Oxidative Stress.

Objective: To compare oxidative status, total antioxidant capacity and values of DNA damage in peripheral blood lymphocytes in children exposed to secondhand cigarette smoke with healthy controls. Design: Analytical, Observational. Participants: 54 children without any chronic diseases, attending the healthy child monitoring polyclinic. These comprised 27 children who had been exposed to passive cigarette smoke and 27 children who had not been exposed to cigarette smoke. Main Outcome Measures: Urine cotinine levels by the chemiluminescent technique; DNA damage by alkaline comet assay; and total oxidant status (TOS) using a novel automated measurement method. Results: The mean urine cotinine, TOS, Oxidative Stress Index (OSI) and DNA damage values of the group exposed to cigarette smoke were determined to be at significantly higher level compared to the group not exposed to cigarette smoke (P<0.001). No statistically significant difference was determined in the TAS level between the two groups (P=0.1) Conclusions: The results showed that TOS levels, OSI index and DNA damage in peripheral blood lymphocytes were significantly higher in children exposed to secondhand cigarette smoke than in those not exposed to secondhand cigarette smoke.

The relationship between carotid intima media thickness and oxidative stress in asthmatic children.

Background: Asthma and atherosclerosis are both chronic inflammatory diseases. The progression of the inflammation in asthmatic patients is known to be similar to the increased development of atherosclerosis Objective: The aim of this study was to research the relationship between the difference in carotid intima media thickness (CIMT) and oxidative stress together with difference in CIMT in asthmatic children and control group. Methods: A total of 84 subjects between 6-15 years of age who had been attending the Pediatric Allergy Unit of the Medical Faculty were included in this study. Asthmatic patients and a control group were evaluated by ultrasonography for measurements of CIMT and oxidative status. Results: In the asthmatic patient group, the CIMT was 0.48 ± 0.06 mm (right side) and 0.44 ± 0.05 mm (left side). In the control group it was 0.42 ± 0.05 mm (right side) and 0.42 ± 0.04 mm (left side). This difference is statistically significant (p < 0.0001, p = 0.019 respectively). In the asthmatic group a positive correlation was determined between the total oxidant status (TOS) value and the right and left CIMT (p = 0.007, r = 0.44 and p = 0.001, r = 0.50 respectively). Conclusions: A significant correlation was determined between an increase in oxidative stress and CIMT in asthmatic children. This indicates that atherosclerosis, which is known as an adult disease, may start in childhood. These findings show that it might be beneficial for children who are being followed-up from a diagnosis of asthma to also be evaluated in respect of the development of atherosclerosis.

Serum copper and zinc levels in mothers and cord blood of their newborn infants with neural tube defects: A case-control study.

Objectives: To measure the cord blood and maternal serum levels of folic acid, vitamin B12, zinc, copper, selenium and lead in infants born with neural tube defect (NTD), and to examine a possible relationship between the nutriture of these micronutrients and occurrence of neural tube defect. Design: Case-control study. Methods: Maternal serum and cord blood samples were obtained at delivery from 70 healthy mothers and 74 mothers who had a newborn with NTD. Results: The mean (± SD) maternal serum zinc level in the NTD group was significantly lower than that of the control group (835.6 µg/L ±333.8 µg/L vs. 1035.7 µg/L ± 299.8 µg/L, P=0.004, respectively). The mean maternal and cord serum copper levels in the NTD group were significantly higher when compared to the control group (2831.1 µg/L ± 1017 µg/L vs. 2402 µg/L ± 744.2 µg/L; P=0.03; and 789.8 µg/L vs 517.2 µg/L, P<0.001, respectively). There was a negative correlation between the cord levels of folic acid and copper in the NTD group with the respective maternal serum levels (r=-0.289; P=0.018). Conclusions: High maternal serum levels of copper and lower level of zinc during pregnancy associated with NTD in newborn.

Development of new sensitizations in asthmatic children monosensitized to house dust mite by specific immunotherapy.

It has been hypothesized that specific immunotherapy (SIT) significantly decreases the development of new allergen sensitizations in mono-sensitized patients. In this study, we evaluated the effect of SIT on the development of new allergen sensitizations in 129 asthmatic children mono-sensitized to house dust mite. SIT was accepted by only 70 of them (SIT group). The remaining 59 children were treated only with medication (control group). At the end of the study we found that 33% of all patients developed new sensitizations. Surprisingly, the prevalence of new sensitizations was significantly higher in the SIT group (45.5%) than in the control group (18.1 %). Ash tree (Fraxinus excelsior), Olive and Meadow fescue (Festuca elatior) were the most common allergens responsible for the new sensitizations. We conclude that SIT did not prevent the onset of new sensitizations in asthmatic children mono-sensitized to house dust mite.